Gus sat in the rocking chair… the one that his Dad and Justin had given them as a shower gift when they first learned that Heather was pregnant… and rocked his sleeping son in his arms.  Regalo, or RB as everyone now called him, slept peacefully with his thumb planted firmly in his mouth.  Once again, unexpected tears formed in the corners of Gus’s eyes.  Every time he held his son, he felt his heart squeezed like a vise, with pain from knowing that he couldn’t hold his other son in the same way.  It was now going on two months since he last saw Amado, and the agony of missing him had only grown worse with each passing day.  He tried to let his gratitude that they still had one of their twins ease the pain a little, but it wasn’t enough to lessen the loss.  He began crooning to the baby, forcing back the tears that threatened to fall.  He heard the sound of approaching footsteps.  He looked up just as Jason stepped into sight.  Jason stood in the doorway, a peculiar look on his face.  If Gus was forced to describe it, shock (mixed with something else) would be the word that came to mind.

“Jase, what’s wrong?”

Jason hurried over to Gus and bent down, embracing his husband and son.  He made a sound which Gus couldn’t define.  It was somewhere between a cry and laughter. 

“Jase, you’re scaring me!  What’s going on?”

Jason lifted his face and Gus saw tears in his eyes too.  At last Jason spoke.

“They found our boy!” he choked out.

It took several seconds before Gus realized what Jason had just blurted out.  He felt light-headed.  Jason instantly recognized what was happening, and reached for Regalo, easing the baby out of Gus’s arms and into his own.  The stunned look on Gus’s face melted into one of unbridled joy.  The two men sank down onto the floor together, Jason holding Regalo and Gus wrapping his arm around them both.  Tears began flowing freely as the two men wept with joy.  Several minutes passed before either could talk again.  Finally, Gus scooted back and faced his husband and son.

“How… when… where?” he stammered out.  “How did you find out?”

“Whoa!  One question at a time.  I just spoke with your dad.  The how is thanks to that detective your dad hired.  He’s been keeping tabs on any developments the authorities have, and then passing updates on to Brian.  He just called your dad to inform him that his sources told him there has been an arrest less than an hour ago in Texas.  They have both Heather and our son with them now.  The FBI is making arrangements to have both of them flown back here ASAP!  That’s the when and the where.  Brian told me that we should be hearing from them at any time now.”

Almost as if on cue, the couple heard their front doorbell ring.  Getting up quickly, they made their way to the front, with Regalo safely tucked in Jason’s arms.  Without hesitation, Gus threw open the door.  As hoped for, they saw two men in suits standing on their threshold.  The men had hints of smiles on their faces as they came through the door, after being invited in.  Gus directed them to a couch in the front room.  He and Jason took seats across from the men.  Gus spoke up first.

“You have some news for us?” he asked with anticipation.

Seeing the beaming smile on Gus’s face, the older man answered, “I have the feeling you already know what we are about to tell you.  But yes, we have news… very good news.  We have finally located where the woman who took your son was hiding.  She has already been picked up by the police.  The best news, of course, is that your son has been in no way harmed while with her.”

“We never thought she would harm him, but he didn’t belong with her.  He’s our son, not hers,” Jason declared vehemently.

“Right!  And, we always hope for an outcome like this with any kidnapping… I mean, to find the child healthy and safe.”

“So, when do we get our boy back?  We’re ready to go to him right now… that is as soon as we can have someone watch over this little one first,” Jason said, looking down at the baby sleeping peacefully in his arms, knowing nothing of the drama that had been swirling around the family for so long.

“Arrangements have already been made to fly your son here from Dallas, with an escort.  They didn’t want to waste any time in reuniting your family.  Officers have been sent to Dallas to bring Miss Riverside back too on a later flight, where she will be arraigned and charged with kidnapping.  I doubt she’ll receive bail based on her ability to flee, which has been clearly demonstrated already.”

After giving the couple all the details of Amado’s flight, the detectives parted, feeling grateful that this was one kidnapping case with a happy ending.  It wasn’t always so with every case.  Once they were gone, Gus and Jason got right to work informing everyone they knew about their joyful news.  With each call, their hearts felt a little lighter.  They were still making calls when they heard knocking at their front door again.  Once they opened the door, they saw their parents standing there, smiles brighter than the Sun covering their faces.  Tears welled up as they all hugged each other in turn.  Ushering them into the house, they each took a seat facing one another.  Before they could speak, a knock announced more visitors.  In the next half hour, the house was filled with family and close friends, all eager to learn every detail that they had been given about Heather’s capture and Amado’s return.  It was a day of celebration in the Marcus/Peterson/Tyler household.

******************************************

Far away from the celebrations going on in Pittsburgh, a woman sat in her tiny cell, and wondered what had gone so terribly wrong.  The image of the police standing on her doorstep would not go away, no matter how hard she tried to dispel it.  The moment she saw them standing there, she knew the life she had envisioned for herself, and the son she had made herself believe was hers, was over.  The delusions she had so carefully crafted for herself fell away in that instant, and her world went black.  She had no memory of an ambulance being called, of being checked out by the EMTs, or of being brought back to consciousness via smelling salts, after her vitals proved to be stable.  She painfully remembered being taken to the police station in the back of a patrol car, with her hands handcuffed behind her.  She saw herself begging for information as to what they were doing with her ‘son’, and being given no information.  And now she sat in the cell she had been escorted to and waited… for what, she could not know.

Elsewhere in the precinct, Detective Bob Franklin was on the phone.  He wasn’t looking forward to giving his wife news of his discoveries regarding the woman she had befriended in the park.  Marie hated injustice, and knowing what her new friend had done would devastate her.  Marie was far too trusting, and this wasn’t the first time someone had fooled her as to their real character.  However, no one had fooled her as badly as this woman.  Seconds before Marie answered the phone, he decided that he shouldn’t tell Marie the full story over the phone. 

“Hello,” he heard his wife’s voice answering.

“Hi, Sweetheart.  I just called to let you know that I was able to check up on your friend.”

Marie’s voice brightened.  “That’s great.  So, I was worrying about nothing, right?”

Bob hesitated for only a second, then responded.  “She is perfectly safe, and so is the baby.  I’m about to get off work a little early today, so I’ll tell you everything when I get home, okay?”

There was something about his voice that wiped the smile off her face.

“Okay,” she answered tentatively.

The call ended after a few loving words.  Bob got ready to leave work for the day.  He wasn’t looking forward to telling Marie the full story about her friend.  There was one bright spot with the whole mess.  It would be in being able to tell her, it was only because of her that a family would be able to reunite with their missing child.  He hoped that would be of some comfort for her.

***********************************

Dozens of eyes strained to get a good look at every passenger exiting from the plane that had just landed.  Their eyes sought out only one in the crowd.  One by one, passengers deboarded the plane and entered the terminal.  Eyes scanned each face, then dismissed them as being of no interest.  Finally, eyes lit up as they saw a tall woman exiting with an infant in her arms, followed by two men flanking her on each side.  Instantly the waiting crowd knew who they were looking at.  Just as quickly, the three people with the baby recognized just who the crowd was waiting for, even though they were strangers. 

Gus and Jason were the first to rush forward, followed closely by family and friends.  They encircled the threesome, as Gus reached his arms out for the baby.  The woman, a child welfare worker from Dallas, handed the little boy over to his father.  Tears gushed from Gus’s eyes as he gazed down at his son for the first time in months.  He felt Jason’s arms encircling them both, and saw the same tears in Jason’s eyes that fell from his own. 

“Thank you,” Gus breathlessly whispered to the three folks who had brought their son back to them.  “Thank you, thank you,” he repeated.  

The three escorts stepped back as all the others, who had been waiting with Gus and Jason, moved in closer to get a good look at the infant they had been missing with all their hearts.  Brian carried the prodigal son’s twin brother in his arms, bringing him forward so that Gus and Jason could finally see their two boys side by side again.  Joy filled every heart, just seeing the twins together again, as it should have always been from Day One.  Although not quite four months old yet, it seemed that some instinct told the boys that they belonged together, as two tiny hands reached out towards each other.  Laughter could be heard throughout the crowd as Brian handed Regalo over to Jason so that both fathers now held a son.  Justin put his arm around Brian and the two grandfathers smiled at one another.  Jason’s parents did the same.  For the first time since the nightmare had begun, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends felt the world was finally right again.  Now was the time to start anew.  It would begin with a welcome home party that no one would forget.

*****************************************

As Gus and Jason scanned the large group of family and friends, all of whom had gathered for the celebration, it felt like déjà vu once more.  Only a few months earlier, this exact same scene, along with almost all of the same people, had gathered in this very home for a different celebration… the naming of their baby boys.  It had been such an emotional time on that day, but even more so this time around.  The one person missing from the gathering this time was the woman who had made their births possible… Heather Riverside.  At this very moment she was being prepared for a transfer from Texas to Pennsylvania, where she would be charged with kidnapping.  But neither of the two men cared about that for the moment.  All they cared about were the two infants that each held in their arms.  AB and RB, as they were already being called by their dads, along with nearly everyone else, seemed fascinated by all the activity surrounding them.  They had already changed so much since the last time they were in such a gathering together.  Their curious eyes appeared to drink in all the sights and sounds of the room.  Neither of the twins seemed disturbed by what was going on.  Instead, they almost seemed to be excited with it all. 

“You boys are going to have your hands full when these two start growing up,” came a voice just behind the couple.

Brian had been quietly observing the boys and their babies from across the room.  He couldn’t help but notice how the twins showed no fear or discomfort being the center of attention with so many folks.  His heart felt light seeing how calm and fascinated they both were. 

“Why’s that?” asked Gus, turning to face his dad.

“All you have to do is watch them, and I can already see that they are going to want to set the world on fire.  I just have a feeling that very little will scare them, if anything.  Isn’t that right, AB… RB?” Brian asked the twins, leaning down to kiss the tops of each little head as he did.

Gus and Jason were beaming with pride.  Justin stepped up and joined them. 

“Hey, Brian, did you get around to telling the boys the whole story of how they found Heather and rescued AB yet?”

“Not yet.  I was about to do just that,” Brian answered.  He turned to Gus and Jason, who were now fully focused on what he had to say.

“Okay, this comes straight from the private detective I hired,” Brian began.  “You heard from the police that they discovered Heather, thanks to a report from one of their officers.  He recognized the license plate on her car, which was sitting outside her condo, but there is more to that story.  It seems that the officer, who made the discovery, was only at her place because of a request from his wife.  The wife had made friends with Heather while she was living there.  Apparently, something had caused this woman to become concerned for Heather’s safety, based on the backstory Heather had given her.  The wife had asked her husband to do a wellness check on Heather, and that’s when he saw the car.  After checking out the license plate, he reported it and they sent him back to her place with an arrest warrant.  So, to make a long story short, it’s the wife that we have to thank for AB’s recovery.”

“Oh my God, then we have to do something to show our gratitude,” Gus declared.

“Yes!  There must be something that we can do for her,” replied Jason.

“I was thinking the same thing,” Brian agreed.  “And even though the officer is not allowed to accept any gifts for doing his duty, nothing says we can’t show our appreciation for the wife.  I did learn from my detective that the family has two young sons of their own.  So, I was thinking that perhaps we could set up a college scholarship for each of their children.  You know, cops don’t make a ton of money, and this would be a way of helping their boys, because they helped our boys to finally reunite.  What do you think of that idea?” Brian asked. 

“Dad, you’re a genius,” Gus answered.

And with that, the decision was made.  The future looked bright for Brian and Justin’s growing family.   It also looked bright for the family of a caring stranger, who set in motion the ability to make their family whole again.  Now all they had to do was meet this wonderful woman, so they could thank her in person.

To be continued……